Morning Coffee with Jesus - August 7, 2012
"The tempter came to him and said, 'If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.'”
4 Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’[b]” 6 “If you are the Son of God,” he said, “throw yourself down. For it is written:
“‘He will command his angels concerning you,and they will lift you up in their hands,so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.’[c]”
7 Jesus answered him, “It is also written: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’[d]
Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. 9 “All this I will give you,” he said, “if you will bow down and worship me.”
10 Jesus said to him, “Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.’[e]” (Matt. 4:3-4, 6-10)
Greetings love ones! Welcome to Tuesday!
We live in a world where temptations continually pound on us moment by moment, day by day. And very often, just when we think we are in a safe place where we can relax from all of the temptations in this life, along comes a situation or a person in the workplace that only adds more temptation to what we're already trying to handle.
I recall vividly a woman with whom I worked at a company I loved. I was a Human Resources Manager. She came to me one one day and informed me that she had been told by her manager to download "pirated" software - in other words, steal software without paying for it. She was angry, frustrated and ready to quit.
A few days later I learned that she had resigned her position and left the company. When I finally caught up with her she told me that she would not download pirated software and since the directive to do so came from her boss' boss, she didn't feel that she was given much choice.
Perhaps you are in a position of leadership and the temptation to "fudge" numbers has reared its ugly head. Or perhaps the workload is more than you can handle right now because of downsizing in your company and it would be easier to say you've investigated something when in fact you have not investigated it at all. These temptations are no different than the temptations that Jesus endured just after his baptism and prior to the beginning of his public ministry. They are Satan's attempt to trip you up on your walk of faith in Christ.
Consider the cost of "fudging" numbers or reporting something as investigated when, in actuality, it wasn't. It could mean a demotion or worse, being fired from your company. The cost is too high a price to pay just to make life easier for yourself.
When He was tempted, Jesus fought off those temptations with scripture. Twice Jesus said, "It is written." If Jesus uses scripture to ward off the temptations of the enemy, how much more do we need to rely in it!
Today, consider the high cost of leadership but also know that leadership doesn't have to own you. Work at a level of integrity you would possess if Jesus was sharing your cubicle. Invite Him into every thought, every action and every attitude. Then, when temptations come along you can follow the example of Jesus when He said, "“Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.’"
Have an awesome day in Jesus.
Blessings,
Elisa
